Systems, methods and user interfaces in a patent management system

ABSTRACT

A system and method of providing data for a patent management system is proposed. The system presents one or more data fields of interest to a user and the method comprises downloading at least one patent document from an external patent database; applying optical character recognition to the downloaded document to provide a text-readable version of the at least one patent document; automatically applying electronic text analysis to the text-readable version to extract one or more data elements associated with a field of interest, and transmitting the data elements to a user.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) of U.S.Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/542,515 filed Oct. 3, 2011,which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety and made apart hereof. This application also claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C.119(e) of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/561,502 filedNov. 18, 2011, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entiretyand made a part hereof.

BACKGROUND

The management of a patent portfolio involves multiple stages.Initially, a decision is made as to what inventions are worth theinvestment of filing a patent application. Then, each filed patentapplication goes through prosecution with the patent office. Finally,for each patent that is allowed, maintenance fees must be paid at avariety of intervals to keep the patent in force.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

Some embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not limitation inthe figures of the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a system component diagram, according to an exampleembodiment.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a patent management system, according to anexample embodiment.

FIGS. 3A-3D are block diagrams showing methods for aspects of patentmanagement, according to example embodiments.

FIG. 4 is a depiction of a user interface, according to an exampleembodiment.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of machine in the example form of a computersystem within which a set of instructions, for causing the machine toperform any one or more of the methodologies herein discussed, may beexecuted.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The life cycle of a patent may include multiple stages. These stagesgenerally include invention, filing a patent application on theinvention, prosecuting the patenting application to allowance orabandonment, determining whether to file any continuing applications,and paying maintenance fees on the allowed patent.

At each stage, one or more parties determine the best course of actionto take with respect to the invention. For example, when determiningwhether or not to file a patent, the inventor may know what products areout in the technology area of the invention, a business manager may knowhow the invention fits in with a company's goals, and a patent attorneymay have researched existing patents or application in the technologyarea of the patent. These parties will ultimately make the decisionwhether it is worth the initial investment of filing an application onthe invention and then determine the next course of action at eachfuture stage.

In some instances, an inventor, business manager or portfolio managermay wish to monitor the patent activities of one or more competitors.The provision of up-to-date information relating to cited references ortechnology trends in the art to which a user's or competitor's patentportfolio relates may be particularly helpful in devising patentingstrategy or making informed business decisions.

In various embodiments, a patent management system includes tools tohelp the parties involved in the patenting process make decisions ateach stage in the life of a patent. These tools may also be used forgeneral research by parties not immediately involved with the patentingof the invention. Additionally, these tools may be used as standalonetools, in combination with other tools, and in combination with otherpatent management systems. The tools may be used to provide patentanalytics information. The tools may also be used to facilitateprosecution of a patent matter, by assisting in extracting andautomatically analyzing data from external patent databases, forexample. In an example embodiment, tools and systems are provided for apatent management system known as “PAIR Plus”.

Examples of tools include, but are not limited to prosecution analytics,reference management, prior art analytics, docketing management, claimmapping, claim analytics, portfolio analytics, external database (e.g.,PAIR) analytics, annuity management, and strategic monitoring. Thesystems, methods and tools of the present invention set forth in thisspecification are described in relation to a patent management systemand patent matters, but it will be understood that the present inventioncould equally be applied to other forms of intellectual property(trademarks, copyright, registered designs, and the like). Moreover, theterm “patent” is not intended to be limited to an issued patent, but mayinclude a pending patent application or un-filed application orinvention disclosure. The term “user” is intended to cover any personinteracting with the patent management system. A user may be aninventor, portfolio manager, business manager or patent attorney, forexample.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of computer network system 100 according tovarious embodiments. The computer network system 100 includes patentmanagement system 102 and user terminal 104 communicatively coupled vianetwork 106. In an embodiment, patent management system 102 includes webserver 108, application server 110, and database management server 114which may be used to manage at least operations database 116 and fileserver 118. Patent management system 102 may be implemented as adistributed system, for example one or more elements of the patentmanagement system 102 may be located across a wide-area network (WAN)from other elements of patent management system 102. As another example,a server (e.g., web server 108, file server 118, database managementserver 114) may represent a group of two or more servers, cooperatingwith each other, provided by way of a pooled, distributed, or redundantcomputing model.

Network 106 may include local-area networks (LAN), wide-area networks(WAN), wireless networks (e.g., 802.11 or cellular network), the PublicSwitched Telephone Network (PSTN) network, ad hoc networks, personalarea networks (e.g., Bluetooth) or other combinations or permutations ofnetwork protocols and network types. The network 106 may include asingle local area network (LAN) or wide-area network (WAN), orcombinations of LAN's or WAN's, such as the Internet. The variousdevices/systems coupled to network 106 may be coupled to network 106 viaone or more wired or wireless connections.

Web server 108 may communicate with file server 118 to publish or servefiles stored on file server 118. Web server 108 may also communicate orinterface with the application server 110 to enable web-basedapplications and presentation of information. For example, applicationserver 110 may consist of scripts, applications, or library files thatprovide primary or auxiliary functionality to web server 108 (e.g.,multimedia, file transfer, or dynamic interface functions). Applicationsmay include code, which when executed by one or more processors, run thetools of patent management system 102. In addition, application server110 may also provide some or the entire interface for web server 108 tocommunicate with one or more of the other servers in patent managementsystem 102 (e.g., database management server 114).

Web server 108, either alone or in conjunction with one or more othercomputers in patent management system 102, may provide a user-interfaceto user terminal 104 for interacting with the tools of patent managementsystem 102 stored in application server 110. The user-interface may beimplemented using a variety of programming languages or programmingmethods, such as HTML (HyperText Markup Language), VBScript (VisualBasic® Scripting Edition), JavaScript™, XML® (Extensible MarkupLanguage), XSLT™ (Extensible Stylesheet Language Transformations), AJAX(Asynchronous JavaScript and XML), Java™, JFC (Java™ FoundationClasses), and Swing (an Application Programming Interface for Java™).

User terminal 104 may be a personal computer or mobile device. In anembodiment, user terminal 104 includes a client program to interfacewith patent management system 102. The client program may includecommercial software, custom software, open source software, freeware,shareware, or other types of software packages. In an embodiment, theclient program includes a thin client designed to provide query and datamanipulation tools for a user of user terminal 104. The client programmay interact with a server program hosted by, for example, applicationserver 110. Additionally, the client program may interface with databasemanagement server 114.

Operations database 116 may be composed of one or more logical orphysical databases. For example, operations database 116 may be viewedas a system of databases that when viewed as a compilation, represent an“operations database.” Sub-databases in such a configuration may includea matter database a portfolio database, a user database, a mappingdatabase and an analytics database. Operations database 116 may beimplemented as a relational database, a centralized database, adistributed database, an object oriented database, or a flat database invarious embodiments.

In various embodiments, the tools of the patent management system sharea common framework. The framework may have a base organization unit of amatter. In various embodiments, a matter is an issued patent or patentapplication that includes one or more patent claims. In an embodiment, amatter is generally identified by its patent number or publicationnumber. Identification may mean either identification as it relates to auser of the patent management system or within the patent managementsystem. Thus, a user may see a matter listed as its patent number whileinternally a database of the patent management system may identify it bya random number. One or more matters may be associated with prior art orcited references stored in a reference or prior art database.

One or more matters may be grouped together to form a portfolio. Amatter may also be associated with one or more other matters in afamily. A family member may be a priority matter, a continuing (e.g.,continuation, divisional) matter, or foreign counter-part member. Familymembers may be determined according to a legal status database such asINPADOC.

Data stored in a first database may be associated with data in a seconddatabase through the use of common data fields. For example, considerentries in the matter database formatted as [Matter ID, Patent Number]and entries in the portfolio database formatted as [Portfolio ID, MatterID]. In this manner, a portfolio entry in the portfolio database isassociated with a matter in the matter database through the Matter IDdata field. In various embodiments, a matter may be associated with morethan one portfolio by creating multiple entries in the portfoliodatabase, one for each portfolio that the matter is associated with. Inother embodiments, one or more patent reference documents may beassociated with a patent by creating multiple entries in the patentdatabase, for example. The structure of the database and format and datafield titles are for illustration purposes and other structures, names,or formats may be used. Additionally, further associations between datastored in the databases may be created as discussed further herein.

During operation of patent management system 102, data from multipledata sources (internal and external) is imported into or accessed by theoperations database 116. Internal sources may include data from thevarious tools of the patent management system. External sources 120 mayinclude websites or databases associated with foreign and domesticpatent offices, assignment databases, WIPO, and INPADOC. In variousembodiments, the data is scraped and parsed from the websites if it isunavailable through a database. The data may be gathered using API callsto the sources when available. The data may be imported and stored inthe operations database on a scheduled basis, such as daily, weekly,monthly, quarterly, or some other regular or periodic interval.Alternatively, the data may be imported on-demand. The imported data mayrelate to any information pertaining to patents or patent applications,such as serial numbers, title, cited art, inventor or assignee detailsand the like.

After data importation, the data may be standardized into a commonformat. For example, database records from internal or external sourcesmay not be in a compatible format with the operations database. Dataconditioning may include data rearrangement, normalization, filtering(e.g., removing duplicates), sorting, binning, or other operations totransform the data into a common format (e.g., using similar dateformats and name formats).

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of patent management system 102, according toan example embodiment. Illustrated are user database 202, matterdatabase 204, portfolio database 206, mapping database 208, analyticsdatabase 210, display module 212, input module 214, mapping module 216,analytics module 218, tracking module 220 and filtering module 222. Invarious embodiments, the data stored in databases 202, 204, 206, 208,and 210 may be in the same or multiple physical locations. For example,portfolio database 206 may be stored in one or more computers associatedwith a portfolio management service. In various embodiments, patentmanagement system 102 minors databases stored in other locations. In anembodiment, when a request is made to access data stored in thedatabases, patent management system 102 determines where the data islocated and directs the request to the appropriate location. Similarly,modules 212-222 may be executed across multiple computer systems.

In an example embodiment user database 202 stores data representingusers of patent management system 102. The data may include data fieldsof user credentials including a user ID and password and access rightswith respect to patent management system 102. The user ID may be commonacross the tools of the patent management system. In this manner, accessrights of the user with respect to the tools of the patent managementsystem may follow across the various tools of the patent managementsystem. In an example embodiment, different access rights are granted toa user ID between the various tools.

In various embodiments, each user ID has access rights to one or morematters. Similarly, a user ID may have portfolio level access rights.Access rights may be defined according to at least two parameters: readaccess and write access. Thus, when a user logs into patent managementsystem 102, the user is presented with access only to thematters/portfolios that have been associated with the user ID. More(e.g., additional contact information) or fewer data fields associatedwith a user may be included in a user entry stored in user database 202.

In an embodiment, matter database 204 stores data representing matters.Each matter may be associated with one or more portfolios. In someembodiments, a matter is associated with no portfolios. In variousembodiments, a matter is a foreign or domestic patent or application.Matters may also be inventions that have not yet been filed (e.g., asmay be the case within a docketing system). In an embodiment, a matterentry includes data fields representing a matter ID, patent number,publication number, serial number, docketing number, title (e.g., thename of the patent or application), type of the matter (e.g.,application, issued patent, PCT application), status of the matter(e.g., issued, abandoned, allowed), a link to the patent office wherethe matter was filed, a link to a PDF download of the matter, abstractof the matter, inventors of the matter, current owner of the matter,cited references on the face of the matter, filed date, issue date,docket number, and annuity information (e.g., due date, country, andamount due). In some embodiments, other patent reference documents orprior art in any form may be stored and associated with one or morematters. More or fewer data fields associated with a patent may beincluded in a matter entry stored in matter database 204. In an exampleembodiment, matter database 204 may store a patent matter database,wherein this database includes data about the patent matters. The datamay include, for at least one patent matter, a claim set or statement ofinvention and a priority date for the claim set or statement ofinvention. Matter database 204 may also store a database of prior artdocuments (also known as “references”), wherein the prior art databaseincludes data about the prior art documents. The data may include, forat least one prior art document, a priority date or publication date ofthe document. One or more of the prior art documents may be associatedwith a first patent matter in the patent matter database. Matterdatabase 204 may also store data obtained from internal or externalsources relating to cited references owned by or cited against (in“forward” or “reverse” manner) a target entity (for example, a client ofa firm) as well as cited references owned by or cited against (in“forward” or “reverse” manner) another entity (for example, a competitorof the client or other target entity). Public bibliographic details ofsuch cited references may be obtainable from websites or databasesassociated with foreign and domestic patent offices (PAIR), assignmentdatabases, WIPO, and INPADOC. In various embodiments, the data isscraped and parsed from the websites if it is unavailable through adatabase. The data may be gathered using API calls to the sources whenavailable. The data may be imported and stored in the operationsdatabase on a scheduled basis, such as daily, weekly, monthly,quarterly, or some other regular or periodic interval. Alternatively,the data may be imported on-demand. The imported data may relate to anyinformation pertaining to patents or patent applications, such as serialnumbers, title, cited art, inventor or assignee details and the like.

In various embodiments, a matter is associated with one or more othermatters as a family with a family ID. Family members may be prioritydocuments, continuation patents/applications, divisionalpatents/applications, and foreign patent/application counterparts. In anembodiment, family information is determined according to an externalsource such as INPADOC. Patent reference documents and/or other priorart may be manually or automatically stored, cross-cited and associatedwith related family matters, for example.

Portfolio database 206, in an example embodiment, stores datarepresenting portfolios of one or more matters. Data stored in portfoliodatabase 206 may have been previously generated by a tool of patentmanagement system 102. In various embodiments, a portfolio may begenerated by a user using patent management system 102. For example, auser interface may be presented to the user requesting a name for theportfolio and identifiers of matters to be included in the portfolio. Inan embodiment, a portfolio entry in portfolio database 206 includes thedata fields of portfolio ID and portfolio name. Additionally, a datafield for matter ID may also be included in an entry in the portfoliodatabase. Thus, each portfolio may be associated with one or morematters through the use of the matter ID data field. More or fewer datafields associated with a portfolio may be included in a portfolio entryof portfolio database 206.

In various embodiments, mapping database 208 may include mappings ofpatent concepts to one or more matters. In an example embodiment, theunderlying patents and patent claims included in each patent portfoliomay be categorized by patent concepts (sometimes referred herein asconcepts) such as scope concepts (SC) and technology categories (TC).

In an example embodiment, technology categories are categories thatclaims relate to, but are not necessarily limited to. For example, aclaim to a pulse generator may be put in the technology category“pacemaker”, but not be limited to a pacemaker per se—perhaps the claimmerely says that the pulse generator generates a pulse of certain typethat is useful for pacing, but pacing does not appear in the claim.Hence, the claim relates to the technology category “pacemaker,” but itis not limited to being a pacemaker.

In an example embodiment, scope concepts are concepts that a claim islimited to. This is contrast to technology categories, where the claimmay be mapped to a TC but it not necessarily limited to it. A scopeconcept may be defined in a way to give the concept a context that auser can understand without necessarily having to look at thecorresponding claim language. For example, if the scope concept is“method or apparatus for cardiac rhythm management”, and it is mapped toclaim A, then claim A by definition is limited to this application, suchthat if a target device does not perform cardiac rhythm management, thenit would not infringe claim A.

In an example embodiment, there are two types of scope concepts: 1) highlevel scope concepts that are like technical categories in the sensethey are broad and general and apply to many claims in a portfolio; and2) scope concepts that are specific to a limited number of claims—forexample all claims in a patent may be limited to a very specificdistinguishing feature, and this feature could be the basis for a scopeconcept.

In some example embodiments, high level scope concepts may be definedprior to mapping, and then assigned as applicable. For example, severalscope concepts like: atrial pacing, ventricular pacing, defibrillationmethod or device, etc, may be defined. Then a mapping team may gothrough all claims in a portfolio and map these scope concepts to claimsthat are limited to these concepts. After the mapping is complete, ananalysis may be done showing how many claims in the portfolio arelimited to each of these scope concepts, and the claims may be presentedfor each SC. This may be useful is disqualify claims that are not ofinterest to a particular target (e.g., if an analysis is being done tofind a claim that covers an alleged infringer).

In some example embodiments, specific scope concepts are mapped patentby patent or by patent family. These may enable a person to create oneor two scope concepts that can be mapped across all claims in givenpatent, a family of patents, or across a portion of a patent portfolio.In order to effectively formulate a scope concept that may be globallyuseful across a patent portfolio, it may be useful to be able to examinemultiple patent claims at the same time even if they are not all in thesame patent or patent family. A keyword mapping may indicate that thereis an exact match between the keyword and a subset of the claimlanguage.

In various embodiments, analytics database 210 stores data representingcalculated analytics on data stored within patent management system 102or external data sources. In various embodiments, analytics areorganized according to an individual matter, a portfolio, or family, ordate of an event (such as an assignment recordal, for example). Eventsmay be organized by a date range (for example, all assignments occurringbetween Corporation A and Corporation B in the last 6 months, or allfilings made by inventor X in last 12 months). The calculated analyticsmay be based on information gathered from multiple sources such asdatabases of patent management system 102 and PAIR.

In various embodiments, information for an individual matter may includestatus (e.g., disclosure received, drafting, filed, completed-waitingexamination, in prosecution, allowed, issued), cited prior art, list andtype of rejections (e.g., 35 U.S.C. §101, 102, 103) number of claimsallowed, office action count, interviews held, IDS statements filed,attorney fees to date, and PTO fees to date. Further metrics for anindividual matter stored in analytics database 210 may include, timewaiting for examiner, total time in examination, time waiting for PTOwhile in examination, and time on appeal. Additional prosecution detailsmay include an upcoming docket date (e.g., due dates for office action,IDS due dates, etc.). A claim prosecution history chart may also bestored in analytics database 210 for each matter. The prosecutionhistory may include a history of claim amendments and arguments made inprosecution.

In various embodiments, portfolio and family analytics information maybe stored in analytics database 210 based on aggregating the metrics foran individual matter. In an embodiment, the analytics of a family maydiffer from those in a portfolio as not all family member matters may bepart of a portfolio. Additionally, the analytics may be stored formultiple time periods such that comparisons may be made between currentmetrics and metrics from a year ago (or other time period).

Aggregated metrics may include a total patents and applications, pendingand waiting for examination, in prosecution with no claims allowed, inprosecution with some claims allowed, appealed, notice of allowancereceived, and issued. These metrics may be compiled for both US andinternational matters in the portfolio. Additional information mayinclude the international portfolio distribution by country. An agedistribution of the portfolio may also be compiled. For example theportfolio may be broken down by less than one year old, 1 to 3 yearsold, 3 to 5 years old, 5 to 10 years old, 10 to 20 years old, and 20 ormore years old. Recent filing and issue activity as well as upcomingFord filing deadlines may be stored in analytics database 210.

In various embodiments, prosecution metrics across a portfolio or familyare determined and stored in analytics database 210. This data mayinclude matters waiting for examination, matters in examination, mattersappealed, and cases allowed but not yet issued. Analytics with respectoffice actions may also be compiled and stored. For example success ofallowance after a first office action response, a second response, andso forth may be stored in analytics database 210. Additional prosecutionanalytics may include allowance rate (e.g., 10%) after a telephoneinterview, allowance after an in-person interview, percentage ofinterviews with response, number and type of rejection, average time inprosecution (e.g., in months), average time to file a response, andaverage time to next office action. Further, the list of recentlyallowed cases, recently appealed cases, stalled cases, and recentlyabandoned cases may also be stored for each portfolio and family inanalytics database 210.

In various embodiments, the results of keyword analysis on one or morematters and/or prior art references may be stored in analytics database210. The keyword analysis may be based on the occurrences of thekeywords in the matter or references to derive a score or keywordoverlap.

In various embodiments, data stored in the database for a group ofmatters in a portfolio or family is analyzed to determine the top (e.g.,ten) most cited patents, the top most cited inventors, top most citedprior art owners (e.g., according to assignment documents or the face ofthe patent), newly (e.g., within the last 60 days) cited prior artowners, and top most cited prior art inventors. This information may bestored in analytics database 210.

In an embodiment, display module 212 is configured to display userinterfaces and information retrieved from one or more databases 202-210.If a user is accessing patent management system 102 remotely (e.g.,through a web browser) display module 212 may be configured to transmitdata representing a user-interface through a network to a user terminal.In various embodiments, display module 212 is configured to generate oneor more charts of data stored in databases 202-210. For example, displaymodule 212 may generate a pie chart of the top 10 inventors within aportfolio.

In various embodiments, input module 214 receives data from multiplesources where it may be further processed by one or more other modulesand stored in one or more of databases 202-210. In various embodiments,input module 214 or the patent management system 102 may comprise asearch engine (not shown) for conducting searches at a patent registryor on the Internet. For example, input module 214 may be configured toutilize one or more APIs to data from one or more patent data stores(e.g., public PAIR, private PAIR, INPADOC, foreign patent offices,patent docketing systems, portfolio management systems, etc). The datamay include published patent documents, patent applications, officeactions or other patent office correspondence, prior art references,claim mappings, dockets dates, annuity payment data and patent or patentapplication assignment information. Specific assignment data may includedetails pertaining to the assignor or assignee (e.g. name, address,nationality, place of incorporation), date of assignment, details of thematter being assigned, or any other data pertaining to assignments orchange in ownership that may be recorded at any national or regionalpatent registry such as the United States Patent and Trademark Office(USPTO), World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) or EuropeanPatent Office (EPO), for example.

In various embodiments, input module 214 is configured to receive inputfrom one or more user interface elements. For example patent managementsystem 102 may present multiple user interfaces to a user. These userinterfaces may enable users to input data directly into databases202-210, instruct the patent management system to retrieve data frompatent data stores, and instruct the patent management system to performvarious operations (e.g., analysis) on the data in databases 202-210.

Additionally, input module 214 may be configured to determine theselection of one or more user interface elements by a user and initiatethe action associated with the selected user interface element. Forexample, a user interface element may include a drop-down menu to selecta portfolio. Input module 214 may be configured to receive the selectionof the portfolio by the user. Then, input module 214 may pass theselection to one or more other modules for further processing. Forexample, display module 212 may update the drop-down menu to indicatethe selection of the portfolio. In other example embodiments, a user mayselect an assignee name, or technology field, or date range of potentialinterest (or a combination of these or other aspects of interest), forwhich the user wishes to be informed of recent or ongoing assignment orchange in ownership status. The user may request to be informedregularly (daily, weekly or monthly, for example) of ongoing assignmentsor changes in ownership by making a selection of the appropriateinterface elements.

In various embodiments, input module 214 processes the data that hasbeen inputted and formats it according to the data fields of databases202-210 as discussed above. In various embodiments processing iscompleted using a parsing module (not shown). For example, consider apatent publication that a user has directed to be inputted into one ormore of the databases. The parsing module may use a combination ofautomatic image recognition and text analysis to determine the filingdate, issue date, title, abstract, and claims of the patent. In someembodiments, the parsing module may flag certain pieces of data that hadbeen determined to be potentially inaccurate (e.g., a number could notbe read). A user of patent management system 102 may then examine theflagged data and manually enter the information which is then stored inthe appropriate database.

The resulting data that has been parsed by the parsing module may thenbe entered as an entry in one or more of databases 202-210. This may beaccomplished by, for example, formulating an insert SQL query with theparsed information. In various embodiments the parsing module may parsemultiple pieces of information before generating a database entry. Forexample, input module 214 may receive a docket number for an issuedpatent. The docket number may be combined with the information parsedfrom the issued patent to form an entry in matter database 204.

In various embodiments, mapping module 216 is configured to facilitatemappings of scope concept, technology categories, prior art and keywordsto patent claims of a matter. In an embodiment, mapping signifiesassociation. For example, in conjunction with display module 212 andinput module 214, mapping module 216 may present a user interface ofpatent claims stored in matter database 204 and scope concepts stored inmapping database 208. Input module 214 may receive a selection of one ormore patent claims and one or more scope concepts and pass them tomapping module 216. Mapping module 216 may then formulate an SQL queryto associate the one or more patents claims with the one or more scopeconcepts. When executed, the SQL query, may update the mapping database208 with the associations. In various embodiments, mapping module 216also allows the creation of new scope concepts, technology categories,and keywords that may be mapped to one or more patent claims.Furthermore, mapping module may present user interfaces that allow auser to rank and rate matters stored in matter database 204.

Mapping module 216 may also allow the generation of claim charts of aplurality of cells. A claim chart may include one or more scopeconcepts, technology categories, and keywords on one axis and claims ofmatters in a portfolio on the other axis. The claim chart may include avariety of levels of granularity of scope concepts. Some claims may bemapped to all of the scope concepts while others may not be mapped toany scope concepts. At the cell intersection between a scope concept (ortechnology category or keyword) and a claim an indication of the mappingmay be presented by changing the format of the cell. For example, thecell may be colored blue when a scope concept is mapped and red when notmapped.

In various embodiments, analytics module 218 is configured to examineand run calculations on the data stored in the databases 202-210 togenerate the analytics previously discussed. For example, analyticsmodule 218 may formulate an SQL query that retrieves the number of timesthat a prior art reference has been cited within a portfolio. This querymay be run for each prior art cited within the portfolio to determine alist of the most cited (e.g., the top ten) prior art references with aportfolio. In an embodiment, the queries are formulated and run asrequested by a user. In an embodiment, once the analytics informationhas been determined, it is stored within analytics database 210. Invarious embodiments, queries are formulated and run on a periodic basis(e.g., nightly) and entries in analytics database 210 may be updated toreflect any changes. In other embodiments, the analytics module 218 mayin response to user input formulate a query to examine how many times agiven patent matter has been assigned or been subject to a change inownership from one party to another. Other queries analyzing patentassignment data may be run as requested by a user.

In various embodiments, the analytics module 218 is configured toanalyze and map cited reference data stored in the matter database 204.The data may be scraped in by the input module 214. For example, citedreferences owned by or cited against target or other entities asmentioned above may be mapped against each other to determine a “priorart” overlap. The overlap may be presented graphically, for example in agraphic user interface presented in user terminal 104. In variousembodiments, the overlap may relate to so-called “forward” citations, or“reverse” citations, or both. In various embodiments, the overlap may bepresented for a target company and one or more competitors. Changes inthe overlap over time may also be stored and mapped to give anindication to a user of technology trends, changes in trends and theongoing development of potentially relevant prior art. In variousembodiments, a prior art overlap between a target and competitor may bestored, mapped and shown for a single patent, a portfolio of patents, ora family of patents. The target and other entities of interest, such ascompetitor companies or inventors, may be selected by the user.

An analytical result or mapping may be displayed as a list of prior artcited against both the target and competitor, with an indication ofwhich art overlaps or is common to both listings. In variousembodiments, the analytical result or mapping may in addition oralternatively present a list of companies that own the prior art citedagainst the target and other entities. The target company may appear asan owner. The display module 212 may be configured to display theresults of the mappings and overlap of cited references as a bar chart,or listings, or other graphic, in a user interface of the type shown forexample in FIG. 4.

In various embodiments, the analytics module 218 is configured toreceive input identifying a pool of keywords for a first patent matterin matter database 204 and associated prior art documents in matterdatabase 204. The term keyword is intended to include individualkeywords as well as a number of keywords grouped together making up akey phrase, for example. The module 218 may be further configured toperform a keyword analysis on the first patent matter and associatedprior art documents based on occurrences of the keywords in the firstpatent matter and associated prior art documents. The analytics module218 may be further configured to identify, based on the analysis,keywords occurring uniquely in the first patent matter. In view of theiruniquely occurring nature, these keywords may be regarded as claimelements potentially differentiating the claim set or statement ofinvention over the disclosures contained in the one or more prior artdocuments.

In various embodiments, the analytics module 218 is configured togenerate for a user the patent activity profiles of one or moreentities. The entities may be competitive entities to the user, or theuser's employer or client. The generated activity profiles may form partof information to assist in strategic monitoring of patent portfolios. Apatent activity profile may be built for a particular patent applicantor owner, or a type of owner, and then deviances from that profile maybe flagged. The profile may include foreign filing patterns, US filingpatterns—for example, does the owner typically file a provisionalapplication first, followed by a PCT application, or is a US applicationtypically filed thereafter? The profile may include information aboutabandonments—for example, what subject matter does an owner give up onor surrender during prosecution, or in making abandonment decisions? Invarious embodiments, the profile may include information about instancesor circumstances in which an owner does not pay a patent annuity orrenewal fee. The profile may include any of the data stored in analyticsdatabase 210 referred to above. Analytics module 218 may be configuredto flag deviances from a profile and send update alerts sent to a useraccordingly. For example, in conjunction with display module 212 andinput module 214, analytics module 218 may present to a user aninterface indicating one or more patent activity profiles for one ormore patent owners for the user to select and review.

In some embodiments, a prior art date analyzer system or tool isprovided. The system interacts with an external patent database, such asPAIR, to pull from PAIR priority dates based on user-selected patentmatters and apply prior art rules to determine the likely effective dateof the reference as a potential citation against another patent matter.

In some embodiments a prior art date analyzer system comprises a searchengine (not shown, but for example part of input module 214) to retrievedata from an external patent database (for example PAIR), the dataincluding at least one priority date for a patent matter stored in thedatabase, and an analytics module (for example analytics module 218)configured to receive input identifying national prior art rules,analyze the retrieved data to identify criteria relevant to the rules,and to determine automatically the likely effective date of thereference. The analyzer system may further comprise a database (forexample matter database 204 or analytics database 210) for storing aplurality of national prior art rules for configuring the analyticsmodule to perform the date analysis.

The analyzer system may further comprise a display module for displayingthe results of the date analysis to a user, and in some embodiments, thedisplay module is configured to display the results to a user in ahand-held electronic or mobile device.

In some embodiments, a patent management system comprises a network 106;at least one database 116 (or any of its sub-databases 202-210)accessible on the network and storing data including at least onepriority date for a patent matter stored in the database; and a server(110-118), operatively connected to the network, wherein the serverincludes a processor, a memory, and software operable on the processorto receive input identifying a patent matter in the database andretrieve at least one priority date for the matter from the database,receive input identifying national prior art rules, analyze theretrieved data to identify criteria relevant to the rules, and todetermine automatically the likely effective date of the reference.

The tracking module 220, according to an example embodiment, maintainsinformation related to a specific patent, group of patents, or concept.For example, the tracking module may store information related to apatent's prosecution and litigation history (such as office actions orclaim amendments). In other example embodiments, the tracking module 220may store information relating to the assignment of patent applicationsor patents from one assignee to another, or from an inventor to employerassignee, for example. Information of this nature may be stored bytracking module 220 for defined sets of applications or patentsregistered in a specified name, and within certain date ranges, forexample. Update alerts (e.g., electronic mail, SMS, or similar) may besent to a user indicating a change in ownership for a patent or patentapplication.

In various embodiments, the filtering module 222 is configured to filtera set of matters according to a user preference. For example, a user mayactivate a check box that indicates only pending matters should be shownin a user interface. Filtering module 222 may formulate an assignmentquery consistent with retrieving only pending matters. The results ofthe query (or any query) may then be shared with display module 212where the user interface may be updated. The regular alerts may in otherexample embodiments be pushed to a user terminal 104, an externalwebsite, an intranet site, a PDA, smart phone, or other similar handhelddevice.

In various embodiments, a patent management system 102 may be providedfor automatically monitoring developments in a field of prior art. Thesystem may comprise a database for maintaining an ontology of patentconcepts of the type described above, and an input module 214 forreceiving a search query including a first patent concept related to thefield of prior art to be monitored. In an example embodiment, a searchengine (not shown) may be provided and configured to search the Internetas a function of the search query and generate a first set of searchresults. The search engine may be further configured to run a secondsearch, as a function of the same search query, on a subsequent occasionto generate a second set of search results. The analytics module 218 maybe configured to compare the first and second sets of search results toidentify differences in the results, and the display module 212 may beconfigured to communicate the differences in the search results to auser.

The system may further comprising a patent matter database (e.g. matterdatabase 204) wherein the database includes data about the patentmatters and the data including a claim set for at least one patentmatter and wherein the first patent concept relates to at least onefeature of the claim set. In one example embodiment, the input modulemay be further configured to receive the search query including thefirst patent concept from a user who may select at least one patentconcept from the stored ontology or provide a new patent concept. Inanother example embodiment, the mapping module 216 may be configured toautomatically provide the search query including the first patentconcept to the input module 214, and may be further configured toautomatically select at least one patent concept from the storedontology. The first patent concept may include at least one keyword, forexample at least one keyword present in the claim set. In an exampleembodiment, the first patent concept may include at least one scopeconcept, for example at least one scope concept present in the claimset.

In various embodiments and with reference to FIG. 2, a system formanaging patent matters 102 may comprise an input module 214 to scrapepatent data from an external patent database 120 (such as PAIR), thedata including event dates of at least one patent matter; a docketengine (not shown but may be part of analytics module 218) to docket thescraped event dates and, based on the scraped dates, to calculateresponse due dates for the at least one patent matter; a search engine(not shown but may be part of input module 214) to identify and downloadat least one document from the external patent database 120; and amapping module 216 to associate at least one response due date with theat least one downloaded document.

The input module may scrape data including a transaction log from theexternal database, such as a log of office actions for at least onepatent matter. The docket engine may, in some embodiments, docketresponse due dates including dates for filing foreign applications orprior art cross-citation. The mapping module 216 may in some embodimentassociate the at least one response due date with the at least onedownloaded document by embedding the at least one due date in thedownloaded document. The at least one downloaded document and the atleast one due date embedded in it may be in PDF, Excel or XML form. Insome embodiments, the mapping module 216 may provide the response duedates in a user's Outlook calendar, for example.

In some embodiments, a patent management system comprises a network 106;at least one patent database (operations database 116, sub-databases202-210, or external source database at USPTO PAIR, for example),accessible on the network, and storing data including event dates of atleast one patent matter stored in the database, and a server (any one of110-118), operatively connected to the network, wherein the serverincludes a processor, a memory, software operable on the processor toscrape patent data from the patent database, the data including eventdates of at least one patent matter, docket the scraped event dates and,based on the scraped dates, calculate response due dates for the atleast one patent matter, download at least one document from theexternal patent database, and associate at least one response due datewith the at least one downloaded document.

In various embodiments, a system for generating patent prosecutionanalytics for as patent management system 102 comprises an input module214 to scrape data from an external patent database 120 (such as PAIR),the data containing information about office action activity andresponses thereto for at least one patent matter stored in the database;and one or more analytics modules 218 to analyze the office actionactivity and responses thereto to identify at least instances in which aresponse has resulted in allowance of at least one claim in the at leastone patent matter, or at least instances in which a response has notresulted in allowance of a claim in the at least one patent matter;identify at least one Examiner or attorney associated with the instancesof allowance or non-allowance; and create a prosecution profile for theExaminer or attorney based on the identified instances of allowance ornon-allowance.

The one or more analytics modules 218 may identify the grounds ofrejection relied upon in the office action activity for the at least onepatent matter and, based on the grounds of rejection, group theinstances of allowance or non-allowance in the created profile for theExaminer or attorney. In some embodiments, the one or more analyticsmodules 218 may generate a listing of prosecution profiles for theExaminers or attorneys, the listing comprising prosecution success ratesfor the Examiners or attorneys based on the number of instances ofallowance or non-allowance. In further example embodiments, the one ormore analytics modules may generate a listing of prosecution profilesfor the Examiners or attorneys, the listing comprising prosecutionsuccess rates for the Examiners or attorneys based on the number ofinstances of allowance or non-allowance grouped according to theidentified grounds of rejection.

In various embodiments, a patent management system comprises a network106; at least one patent database (any one or more of databases 116,202-210, or external database source 120) accessible on the network 106,and storing data containing information about office action activity andresponses thereto for at least one patent matter stored in the database,and a server (any one or more of 110-118), operatively connected to thenetwork 106, wherein the server includes a processor, a memory, andsoftware operable on the processor to scrape data from the patentdatabase, the scraped data containing information about office actionactivity and responses thereto for at least one patent matter stored inthe database; analyze the scraped data to identify at least instances inwhich a response has resulted in allowance of at least one claim in theat least one patent matter, or at least instances in which a responsehas not resulted in allowance of a claim in the at least one patentmatter; identify at least one Examiner or attorney associated with theinstances of allowance or non-allowance; and create a prosecutionprofile for the Examiner or attorney based on the identified instancesof allowance or non-allowance.

In various embodiments, a patent management system 102 has one or morehard-wired modules (any one or more of modules 212-222) to perform atleast a portion of one or more of the following: download at least onepatent document from an external patent database 120; apply opticalcharacter recognition to the downloaded document to provide atext-readable version of the at least one patent document; automaticallyapply electronic text analysis to the text-readable version to extractone or more data elements associated with a field of interest, andtransmit the data elements to a user. The one or more hard-wired modules(212-222) may further be configured to embed an action date in thetext-readable version of the at least one patent document.

In various embodiments, a patent management system 102 presents one ormore data fields of interest to a user. The data fields may for examplebe any of those associated with the user interface elements describedfurther below in relation to FIG. 4, or as described above in relationto the information processed by analytics module 218. The system 102comprises a network 106; at least one patent database (anyone or more of116, 202-210, or external database source 120) accessible on the networkand storing data relating to one or more of the data fields of interestfor at least one patent matter stored in the database, and a server (anyone or more of servers 110-118), operatively connected to the network,wherein the server includes a processor, a memory, and software operableon the processor to download at least one patent document from theexternal patent database; apply optical character recognition to thedownloaded document to provide a text-readable version of the at leastone patent document; automatically apply electronic text analysis to thetext-readable version to extract one or more data elements associatedwith a field of interest, and transmit the data elements to a user. Thesoftware may be further operable on the processor to embed an actiondate in the text-readable version of the at least one patent document.

In various embodiments, a patent management system 102 has a system forautomatically proofing the patent specification of a granted patentissued on a patent application, the system having one or more hard-wiredmodules (212-222) configured to perform at least a portion of one ormore of the following: scan amendments made to the patent applicationduring prosecution; assemble the most recent claims, based on thescanned amendments, to create a test claim set of the claims; comparethe test claim set to the claims as published of the issued patent; andidentify any differences between the compared sets of claims andcommunicating the differences to a user.

The one or more hard-wired modules (212-222) may further render thespecification of the patent as issued into text-readable form;automatically compare the text of the specification as filed to the textof the specification of the patent as issued; automatically identify anydifferences between the compared specifications; and communicate thedifferences to a user.

In various embodiments, a patent management system comprises a network106, at least one patent database (any one or more of databases 116,202-210, or external database source 120) accessible on the network andstoring the prosecution history and patent specifications as filed andas issued of at least one patent matter stored in the database, and aserver (any one or more of servers 110-118) operatively connected to thenetwork, wherein the server includes a processor, a memory, softwareoperable on the processor to download at least portions of the filehistory and specification as issued of at least one patent matter storedin the patent database; scan amendments made to the patent matter duringprosecution; assemble the most recent pending claims, based on thescanned amendments, to create a test claim set of the claims; comparethe test claim set to the claims as published of the issued patent; andidentify any differences between the compared sets of claims andcommunicate the differences to a user. The software may be furtheroperable on the processor to render the specification of the patent asissued into text-readable form; automatically compare the text of thespecification as filed to the text of the specification of the patent asissued; automatically identify any differences between the comparedspecifications; and communicate the differences to a user.

Some embodiments of the present inventive subject matter include methodsfor aspects of patent management. Block diagrams of such methods areshown in FIGS. 3A-3.

One such embodiment is illustrated in FIG. 3A. A method 300A formanaging patent matters comprises: at block 302A, scraping patent datafrom an external patent database, the data including event dates for atleast one patent matter; at block 304A, providing a docket engine fordocketing the scraped event dates and, based on the scraped dates,calculating response due dates for the at least one patent matter; atblock 306A, downloading at least one document from the external patentdatabase; and at block 308A, associating at least one response due datewith the at least one downloaded document.

The step of scraping data may include scraping a transaction log fromthe external database and in some embodiments the transaction log is alog of office actions for the at least one patent matter. The responsedue dates may include dates for filing foreign applications or prior artcross-citation. The step of associating at least one response due datewith the at least one downloaded document may include embedding the atleast one due date in the downloaded document. The at least onedownloaded document and the at least one due date embedded in it may bein PDF, Excel or XML form. The method 300A may include providing theresponse due dates in a user's Outlook calendar. The external patentdatabase may be the USPTO database accessible via PAIR.

Another example method embodiment is shown in FIG. 3B. A method 300B ofgenerating patent prosecution analytics may comprise: at block 302Bscraping data from an external patent database, the data containinginformation about office action activity and responses thereto for atleast one patent matter stored in the database; at block 304B, analyzingthe office action activity and responses thereto to identify at leastinstances in which a response has resulted in allowance of at least oneclaim in the at least one patent matter, or at least instances in whicha response has not resulted in allowance of a claim in the at least onepatent matter; at block 306B, identifying at least one Examiner orattorney associated with the instances of allowance or non-allowance;and at block 308B creating a prosecution profile for the Examiner orattorney based on the identified instances of allowance ornon-allowance.

The method 300B may further comprise identifying the grounds ofrejection relied upon in the office action activity for at least onepatent matter and, based on the grounds of rejection, grouping theinstances of allowance or non-allowance in the created profile for theExaminer or attorney. In some embodiments, the method may furthercomprise generating a listing of prosecution profiles for the Examinersor attorneys, the listing comprising prosecution success rates for theExaminers or attorneys based on the number of instances of allowance ornon-allowance. The success rates may be based on the number of instancesof allowance or non-allowance grouped according to the identifiedgrounds of rejection. The method may include transmitting a prosecutionprofile for an Examiner or attorney to a user.

In another example embodiment shown in FIG. 3C, a method 300C ofproviding data for a patent management system which presents one or moredata fields of interest to a user is set out in a block diagram. Themethod 300C may comprise: at block 302C, downloading at least one patentdocument from an external patent database; at block 304C, applyingoptical character recognition to the downloaded document to provide atext-readable version of the at least one patent document; at block306C, automatically applying electronic text analysis to thetext-readable version to extract one or more data elements associatedwith a field of interest; and at block 308C, transmitting the dataelements to a user. In an example embodiment, the method may furthercomprise the step of embedding an action date in the text-readableversion of the at least one patent document.

Another example method embodiment is shown in FIG. 3D. A method 300D ofautomatically proofing the patent specification of a granted patentissued on a patent application is provided. The method 300D comprisesthe steps of: at block 302D, scanning amendments made to the patentapplication during prosecution; at block 304D, assembling the mostrecent claims, based on the scanned amendments, to create a test claimset of the claims; at block 306D, comparing the test claim set to theclaims of the issued patent as published; at block 308D, identifying anydifferences between the compared sets of claims; and at block 310D,communicating the differences to a user.

The method 300D may further comprise the steps of rendering thespecification of the patent as issued into text-readable form;automatically comparing the text of the specification as filed to thetext of the specification of the patent as issued; automaticallyidentifying any differences between the compared specifications; andcommunicating the differences to a user.

Reference is now made to FIG. 4 which shows a user interface 400 thatmay be used to facilitate the methods of the present inventive subjectmatter, according to example embodiments. The user interface 400 may bedisplayed by display module 212 described above. The user interface maybe provided in a website, computer monitor, or mobile device. The typeof user elements, names, and layout depicted in FIG. 4 are intended tobe an illustration of an example user interface of patent managementsystem 102. Other types of user elements, names, and layouts may beused.

User interface 400 is illustrated with multiple user interface elements.In an example embodiment, a user interface element is a graphical ortextual element that a user may interact with to cause an application toperform an assigned action for the interface element. Data representinguser interface 400 may be transmitted via network 106 and presented on adisplay of user terminal 104 through the use of a web browser. A user(e.g., manager of a patent portfolio etc) may interact with the userinterface elements of user interface 400 through the use of an inputdevice (e.g., stylus, cursor, mouse, a finger) of the user terminal. Inan embodiment, a user selection is based on the coordinates of the inputdevice as it makes contact with the display or where a user “clicks” themouse. The coordinates are compared to the coordinates of the user inputelement to determine the selection. The type of user elements, names,and layout depicted in FIG. 4 are intended to be an illustration of anexample user interface of patent management system 102. Other types ofuser elements, names, and layouts may be used. Some elements may beomitted in various embodiments depending on the nature of managementtool provided.

In general, the user interface elements may include my matters 402,patent watches 404, and company watches 406. These elements may be usedto select a context/view of the patent management system. For example,my matters 402 lists the patents included within a portfolio of a user,patent watches 404 lists information on patents that the user hasindicated the patent management system is to watch, and company watches406 lists information on companies that the user has indicated thesystem should watch.

In various embodiments relating to a “PAIR Plus” patent management andanalytics system, the user interface 400 may have further user interfaceelements. The system has access to at least one patent matter database(in this case the USPTO PAIR database, although others could be used)and at least one reference database, for example a reference databasestored in matter database 204. A first user interface element 408 (PAIRdata) allows selection by a user of data stored in PAIR. A second userinterface element 410 (Uncited Art) allows selection by a user of datastored in the at least one reference database (for example, referencesstored in matter database 204). User element 412 (Link cases) is a thirduser interface element for linking or associating at least one of thereferences stored in the reference database with at least one of thepatent matters selected by the user from PAIR. A fourth user interfaceelement 414 (Scan/Upload documents) allows a user to select for storagefurther references into the reference database. In an exampleembodiment, input module 214 may be used to find and load the selecteddocument into the database 204. A fifth user interface element 416 (ArtAnalysis) allows a user to select analysis of at least one of the linkedreferences. In an example embodiment, the analysis is performed by theanalytics module 218. In an example embodiment, the linked reference maybe a reference not previously cited by the USPTO in an Office Actionissued against the patent matter. In this situation, the third userinterface element 412 (Link cases) may be used to link or associate theuncited reference with the patent matter for potential citation in aninformation disclosure statement.

User selection of the fifth user element 416 may further provide ageneral analytics view of at least one patent matter or reference storedin PAIR or the database 204. A user may request further analysis byselecting user interface elements 418 (Art Highlights) and element 420(Analytics with Actions). Using element 418 for example allows a user toview the results of a keyword analysis undertaken on at least one of thelinked references. The keyword analysis may be performed by theanalytics module 420 as described further above using keywords or patentconcepts entered by a user in user interface element 419. Selection ofelement 420 may allow a user to view a list of docket dates and actionsto be undertaken in response to Office Actions issued by a patentoffice, together with an array of views illustrating analytics ofselected patent matters. The analytics may be of any type describedfurther above in relation to modules 212 through 222 above. In variousembodiments, the docket or action dates are embedded, associated with orotherwise saved with the documents uploaded into matter database 204.

In some embodiments, the general analytics view comprises a viewselected from the group of views comprising: reference analysis, patentmatter analysis, reference highlights, office action activity, referencesubmission due dates (selected by user element 424), foreign filing duedates (selected by user element 422), and patent prosecution processoptions (selected by user element 426). As shown in FIG. 4, the firstthrough fifth elements (408-416) are initially provided in the sameview. Pie charts 428 and bar charts 430 may be provided along with otheranalytical information.

Modules, Components and Logic

Certain embodiments are described herein as including logic or a numberof components, modules, or mechanisms. Modules may constitute eithersoftware modules (e.g., code embodied (1) on a non-transitorymachine-readable medium or (2) in a transmission signal) orhardware-implemented modules. A hardware-implemented module is tangibleunit capable of performing certain operations and may be configured orarranged in a certain manner. In example embodiments, one or morecomputer systems (e.g., a standalone, client or server computer system)or one or more processors may be configured by software (e.g., anapplication or application portion) as a hardware-implemented modulethat operates to perform certain operations as described herein.

In various embodiments, a hardware-implemented module may be implementedmechanically or electronically. For example, a hardware-implementedmodule may comprise dedicated circuitry or logic that is permanentlyconfigured (e.g., as a special-purpose processor, such as a fieldprogrammable gate array (FPGA) or an application-specific integratedcircuit (ASIC)) to perform certain operations. A hardware-implementedmodule may also comprise programmable logic or circuitry (e.g., asencompassed within a general-purpose processor or other programmableprocessor) that is temporarily configured by software to perform certainoperations. It will be appreciated that the decision to implement ahardware-implemented module mechanically, in dedicated and permanentlyconfigured circuitry, or in temporarily configured circuitry (e.g.,configured by software) may be driven by cost and time considerations.

Accordingly, the term “hardware-implemented module” should be understoodto encompass a tangible entity, be that an entity that is physicallyconstructed, permanently configured (e.g., hardwired) or temporarily ortransitorily configured (e.g., programmed) to operate in a certainmanner and/or to perform certain operations described herein.Considering embodiments in which hardware-implemented modules aretemporarily configured (e.g., programmed), each of thehardware-implemented modules need not be configured or instantiated atany one instance in time. For example, where the hardware-implementedmodules comprise a general-purpose processor configured using software,the general-purpose processor may be configured as respective differenthardware-implemented modules at different times. Software mayaccordingly configure a processor, for example, to constitute aparticular hardware-implemented module at one instance of time and toconstitute a different hardware-implemented module at a differentinstance of time.

Hardware-implemented modules can provide information to, and receiveinformation from, other hardware-implemented modules. Accordingly, thedescribed hardware-implemented modules may be regarded as beingcommunicatively coupled. Where multiple of such hardware-implementedmodules exist contemporaneously, communications may be achieved throughsignal transmission (e.g., over appropriate circuits and buses) thatconnect the hardware-implemented modules. In embodiments in whichmultiple hardware-implemented modules are configured or instantiated atdifferent times, communications between such hardware-implementedmodules may be achieved, for example, through the storage and retrievalof information in memory structures to which the multiplehardware-implemented modules have access. For example, onehardware-implemented module may perform an operation, and store theoutput of that operation in a memory device to which it iscommunicatively coupled. A further hardware-implemented module may then,at a later time, access the memory device to retrieve and process thestored output. Hardware-implemented modules may also initiatecommunications with input or output devices, and can operate on aresource (e.g., a collection of information).

The various operations of example methods described herein may beperformed, at least partially, by one or more processors that aretemporarily configured (e.g., by software) or permanently configured toperform the relevant operations. Whether temporarily or permanentlyconfigured, such processors may constitute processor-implemented modulesthat operate to perform one or more operations or functions. The modulesreferred to herein may, in some example embodiments, compriseprocessor-implemented modules.

Similarly, the methods described herein may be at least partiallyprocessor-implemented. For example, at least some of the operations of amethod may be performed by one or more processors orprocessor-implemented modules. The performance of certain of theoperations may be distributed among the one or more processors, not onlyresiding within a single machine, but deployed across a number ofmachines. In some example embodiments, the processor or processors maybe located in a single location (e.g., within a home environment, anoffice environment or as a server farm), while in other embodiments theprocessors may be distributed across a number of locations.

The one or more processors may also operate to support performance ofthe relevant operations in a “cloud computing” environment or as a“software as a service” (SaaS). For example, at least some of theoperations may be performed by a group of computers (as examples ofmachines including processors), with these operations being accessiblevia a network (e.g., the Internet) and via one or more appropriateinterfaces (e.g., Application Program Interfaces (APIs).)

Electronic Apparatus and System

Example embodiments may be implemented in digital electronic circuitry,or in computer hardware, firmware, software, or in combinations of them.Example embodiments may be implemented using a computer program product,e.g., a computer program tangibly embodied in an information carrier,e.g., in a machine-readable medium for execution by, or to control theoperation of, data processing apparatus, e.g., a programmable processor,a computer, or multiple computers.

A computer program can be written in any form of programming language,including compiled or interpreted languages, and it can be deployed inany form, including as a stand-alone program or as a module, subroutine,or other unit suitable for use in a computing environment. A computerprogram can be deployed to be executed on one computer or on multiplecomputers at one site or distributed across multiple sites andinterconnected by a communication network.

In example embodiments, operations may be performed by one or moreprogrammable processors executing a computer program to performfunctions by operating on input data and generating output. Methodoperations can also be performed by, and apparatus of exampleembodiments may be implemented as, special purpose logic circuitry,e.g., an FPGA or an ASIC.

The computing system can include clients and servers. A client andserver are generally remote from each other and typically interactthrough a communication network. The relationship of client and serverarises by virtue of computer programs running on the respectivecomputers and having a client-server relationship to each other. Inembodiments deploying a programmable computing system, it will beappreciated that that both hardware and software architectures requireconsideration. Specifically, it will be appreciated that the choice ofwhether to implement certain functionality in permanently configuredhardware (e.g., an ASIC), in temporarily configured hardware (e.g., acombination of software and a programmable processor), or a combinationof permanently and temporarily configured hardware may be a designchoice. Below are set out hardware (e.g., machine) and softwarearchitectures that may be deployed, in various example embodiments.

Example Machine Architecture and Machine-Readable Medium

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of machine in the example form of a computersystem 500 within which instructions, for causing the machine to performany one or more of the methodologies discussed herein, may be executed.In alternative embodiments, the machine operates as a standalone deviceor may be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines. In a networkeddeployment, the machine may operate in the capacity of a server or aclient machine in server-client network environment, or as a peermachine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. Themachine may be a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a set-top box(STB), a PDA, a cellular telephone, a web appliance, a network router,switch or bridge, or any machine capable of executing instructions(sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by thatmachine. Further, while only a single machine is illustrated, the term“machine” shall also be taken to include any collection of machines thatindividually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructionsto perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.

The example computer system 500 includes a processor 502 (e.g., acentral processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU) orboth), a main memory 504 and a static memory 506, which communicate witheach other via a bus 508. The computer system 500 may further include avideo display unit 510 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) or acathode ray tube (CRT)). The computer system 500 also includes analphanumeric input device 512 (e.g., a keyboard), a user interface (UI)navigation device 514 (e.g., a mouse), a disk drive unit 516, a signalgeneration device 518 (e.g., a speaker) and a network interface device520.

Machine-Readable Medium

The disk drive unit 516 includes a machine-readable medium 522 on whichis stored one or more sets of instructions and data structures (e.g.,software) 524 embodying or utilized by any one or more of themethodologies or functions described herein. The instructions 524 mayalso reside, completely or at least partially, within the main memory504 and/or within the processor 502 during execution thereof by thecomputer system 500, with the main memory 504 and the processor 502 alsoconstituting machine-readable media.

While the machine-readable medium 522 is shown in an example embodimentto be a single medium, the term “machine-readable medium” may include asingle medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributeddatabase, and/or associated caches and servers) that store the one ormore instructions or data structures. The term “machine-readable medium”shall also be taken to include any tangible medium that is capable ofstoring, encoding or carrying instructions for execution by the machineand that cause the machine to perform any one or more of themethodologies of the present invention, or that is capable of storing,encoding or carrying data structures utilized by or associated with suchinstructions. The term “machine-readable medium” shall accordingly betaken to include, but not be limited to, solid-state memories, andoptical and magnetic media. Specific examples of machine-readable mediainclude non-volatile memory, including by way of example semiconductormemory devices, e.g., Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EPROM),Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EEPROM), and flashmemory devices; magnetic disks such as internal hard disks and removabledisks; magneto-optical disks; and CD-ROM and DVD-ROM disks.

Transmission Medium

The instructions 524 may further be transmitted or received over acommunications network 526 using a transmission medium. The instructions524 may be transmitted using the network interface device 520 and anyone of a number of well-known transfer protocols (e.g., HTTP). Examplesof communication networks include a local area network (“LAN”), a widearea network (“WAN”), the Internet, mobile telephone networks, Plain OldTelephone (POTS) networks, and wireless data networks (e.g., WiFi andWiMax networks). The term “transmission medium” shall be taken toinclude any intangible medium that is capable of storing, encoding orcarrying instructions for execution by the machine, and includes digitalor analog communications signals or other intangible media to facilitatecommunication of such software.

Although an embodiment has been described with reference to specificexample embodiments, it will be evident that various modifications andchanges may be made to these embodiments without departing from thebroader spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, thespecification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative ratherthan a restrictive sense. The accompanying drawings that form a parthereof, show by way of illustration, and not of limitation, specificembodiments in which the subject matter may be practiced. Theembodiments illustrated are described in sufficient detail to enablethose skilled in the art to practice the teachings disclosed herein.Other embodiments may be utilized and derived therefrom, such thatstructural and logical substitutions and changes may be made withoutdeparting from the scope of this disclosure. This Detailed Description,therefore, is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope ofvarious embodiments is defined only by the appended claims, along withthe full range of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.

Such embodiments of the inventive subject matter may be referred toherein, individually and/or collectively, by the term “invention” merelyfor convenience and without intending to voluntarily limit the scope ofthis application to any single invention or inventive concept if morethan one is in fact disclosed. Thus, although specific embodiments havebeen illustrated and described herein, it should be appreciated that anyarrangement calculated to achieve the same purpose may be substitutedfor the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to coverany and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments.Combinations of the above embodiments, and other embodiments notspecifically described herein, will be apparent to those of skill in theart upon reviewing the above description.

Note on the Abstract

The Abstract of the Disclosure is provided to comply with 37 C.F.R.§1.72(b), requiring an abstract that will allow the reader to quicklyascertain the nature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted withthe understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit thescope or meaning of the claims. In addition, in the foregoing DetailedDescription, it can be seen that various features are grouped togetherin a single embodiment for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure.This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting anintention that the claimed embodiments require more features than areexpressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claimsreflect, inventive subject matter lies in less than all features of asingle disclosed embodiment. Thus the following claims are herebyincorporated into the Detailed Description, with each claim standing onits own as a separate embodiment.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of providing data for a patentmanagement system presenting one or more data fields of interest to auser, the method comprising: downloading at least one patent documentfrom an external patent database; applying optical character recognitionto the downloaded document to provide a text-readable version of the atleast one patent document; automatically applying electronic textanalysis to the text-readable version to extract one or more dataelements associated with a field of interest, and transmitting the dataelements to a user.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising thestep of embedding an action date in the text-readable version of the atleast one patent document.
 3. A patent management system having one ormore hard-wired modules configured to perform at least a portion of oneor more of the following: download at least one patent document from anexternal patent database; apply optical character recognition to thedownloaded document to provide a text-readable version of the at leastone patent document; automatically apply electronic text analysis to thetext-readable version to extract one or more data elements associatedwith a field of interest, and transmit the data elements to a user. 4.The system of claim 3, wherein the one or more hard-wired modules isfurther configured to embed an action date in the text-readable versionof the at least one patent document.
 5. A patent management systemhaving one or more data fields of interest to a user, the systemcomprising: a network; at least one patent database, accessible on thenetwork, and storing data relating to one or more of the fields ofinterest for at least one patent matter stored in the database, and aserver, operatively connected to the network, wherein the serverincludes: a processor, a memory, software operable on the processor to:download at least one patent document from the external patent database;apply optical character recognition to the downloaded document toprovide a text-readable version of the at least one patent document;automatically apply electronic text analysis to the text-readableversion to extract one or more data elements associated with a field ofinterest, and transmit the data elements to a user.
 6. The system ofclaim 5, wherein the software is further operable on the processor toembed an action date in the text-readable version of the at least onepatent document.